Launch of the Arabian - July 1892

For weeks and weeks, Hamiltonians had been venturing to Zealand’s wharf to observe the construction of the first large ship to be built in the city for many years. The Arabian was a large, steel-hulled steamship. As the workers neared completion, the hull could be seen blocks away.

The date selected, and publicized widely, for the launching of the Arabian was Saturday July 21 1892.

The morning before the scheduled afternoon event the Arabian was the subject of much conversation. The Hamilton Times, in its early edition of the paper, carried the following, detailed summary of the Arabian story:

““Getting a large vessel off the ways in it has rested for months, while in the course of erection, is always an interesting event. This afternoon, the large steel propeller, built and owned by Messrs. J.B. and Hugh Fairgrieve, of this city, will enter the waters which she is expected to sail for some years to come, and will, at the same time, receive the name which she will make familiar in many ports along the shores of the Great Lakes. The building of no boat in Hamilton in past years, has been watched with such interest by citizens as that which has centered in the construction of this craft, the first all-steel steamship constructed in a dock yard of this once famous port of Hamilton. Ever since the great hull first took shape, thousands of people have visited the boat, both Sundays and weekdays, and many have been the conjectures as to her size, speed and the hundred and one other matters connected with a steamer, which furnish material for argument amongst hundreds of curious people. In about three weeks from today, the new steamer will be placed  in commission and will probably make her first trip to Montreal and will sail between that port, Kingston, Toronto, Hamilton and Duluth.

“The negotiations for the building of the vessel were concluded in December of last year, and the work of construction was commenced in the early part of February of this year. A large force of men has been steadily employed on the boat under the direction of the designer, Mr. Hugh Fairgrieve, and a couple of experts from Glasgow, Scotland. The Arabian, as the vessel is named, will be the largest vessel trading on the lakes to enter Montreal. Her dimensions are 180 feet overall, 172 feet on the waterline, depth of hold 14 feet and 31 feet beam.  When loaded she will draw about 15 feet water. The boat is furnished with compound engines of 500 horsepower, which will develop  a speed of about 17 knots an hour. The hull is built entirely of steel, is sheathed on the bottom with rock elm, four inches thick, and also protected with the necessary wales of river and canal navigation. To Mr. Hugh Fairgrieve belongs the credit of designing both the vessel and the machinery. The last mentioned  is of the most complete description, wenches, windlasses, etc. being operated by steam, and the whole vessel is furnished with complete apparatus for steam heating. Everything about the hull is strongly built and she is well-equipped to face the roughest weather. In the immense hold, no less than 44,000 bushels of standard grain can be safely stored.

“The cabins for officers and crew will be comfortably furnished, and there will also be accommodation for a few passengers, although the boat was specially designed for the fight trade. The total cost of the vessel will be between $65,000 and $70,000, and her season will be from the opening of navigation until the close, ‘no matter how rough the weather,’ as Capt. Fairgrieve, one of the owners remarked, his face wreathed in smiles as he glanced at the staunch-looking craft. The steel hull was built by the Hamilton Bridge & Tool Company, which will have charge of the launch this afternoon. Should an accident occur while the ceremony is taking place, and when such catastrophes take place, the loss is generally heavy,  the responsibility will rest with the Bridge and Tool people.

“The new craft will be commanded by Capt. Henry Chesnut, formerly in command of the propeller Canada. Captain ‘Jim’ is a smart officer and the boat is in good hands. The mate will be Mr. John Grant. Mr. John Huff has been appointed chief engineer, and he will be assisted by Mr. Frank Norton as second engineer. The crew will consist of twenty men.

“The young lady who has been selected to christen the vessel is Miss Rita Fairgrieve, the little granddaughter of Captain Fairgrieve.”¹

¹ Hamilton Times. July 21 1892.

It was a hot August day, but the heat and humidity did not deter those anxious to see the huge vessel slide in the waters of Hamilton Bay, but they were destined to be disappointed :

 “For four long hours a large force of men made almost herculean efforts to get the big vessel to slide from the immense cradle in which it reposed, and their work was ably assisted by a steam tug. There was ‘nary a launch,’ and the thousands of spectators who had spent the entire afternoon waiting for the event that did not materialize were compelled to retrace their steps up town, disgusted with themselves, the heat and other ‘busted hopes.’ And such a crowd it was – composed of both sexes, made up of little and big people, young and old, rich and poor, and everybody from the little bare-footed, ragged newsboy to the solid citizen, as deeply interested as his neighbor in watching for the first movement of the big boat. The high embankment back of the dockyard was lined with people, the roofs of all the coal sheds, warehouses and boathouses in the vicinity were also crowded, and an immense gathering stood for hours under the blazing sun in the yard around the vessel or occupied seats on the piles of lumber lying around. In the bay, just clear of the slip into which the boat was expected to slide, were several yachts and scores of rowboats and other small craft. The piers at each side of the slip were black with people, and as the boat would have undoubtedly, in case of a launch, displaced an immense quantity of water, naturally it would have completely submerged them and possibly drowned several people. Many a friendly warning from the workmen around the boat was received with laughter by the crowd.

“By 3 o’clock, the time announced for the launch, the crowd had become so dense, especially around the big hull, that the movements of the workers were considerably hampered. A small platform had been erected immediately under the bows and on this were seated the heroine of the occasion, little Miss Rita Fairgrieve, who was to have the honor of christening the new steamship, Mrs. J.B. Fairgieve, Miss Mabel Fairgrieve, Mr. and Mrs. James Fairgrieve, Dr. Vernon, Mr.James Hendrie and Mr. P. Hardy, Inspector of Lighthouse, (Kingston). From the bows and stern of the vessel, large Union Jacks were fluttering, and from the base of the bowsprit, suspended by gaily-colored ribbons, hung a bottle of champagne. This last important factor in the affair was in charge of Miss Rita Fairgrieve, whose duty it was to smash the bottle across the bows of the vessel, christening it at the same time the Arabian, or, in other words, as some old fellow put it, ‘just a waste of good, elegant, champagny.’ Captain J.B. and Mrs. Hugh Fairgrieve were interested spectators of the work.

“About 3:30 the last prop was pulled away and the order given to stand clear, and all those standing near the vessel rushed back, but their haste to get out of harm’s way was unnecessary, as the boat did not move a sixteenth part of an inch, but seemed as solid as though she were nailed to the cradle. Two big hydraulic jacks, requiring several men to lift them, were procured and placed under the bows, but all to no purpose, and the hull seemed there to stay. The assistance of the steam tug St. George was called in and a rope thicker than an average man’s arm was used as a tow line, and the tug almost inculpated her engines in efforts to start the big boat. She made several attempts and tackled her contract  in several different ways, trying long, steady pulls, shorter ones, then jerks and finally commenced taking ‘running jerks’ on the tow line with no better result than raising cheers from the crowd whenever a hawser parted or the rope broke, both of which occurred several times. The last time the rope broke, several rowboats narrowly escaped being run down by the tug, owing to the impetus gained from the head of steam on.

“Once more those who were fortunate to have seats resumed them and conversed with less fortunate bystanders on the probability of the launch taking place before night, and of course every other man, whether he had ever been to a launch before or not, knew what was the matter and interested or bored his listeners with accounts with what he would do if he owned the boat. The main trouble seemed to be that the ways having been greased about a week ago, the hot weather had rendered the grease sticky, and that virtually the bottom of the boat was glued to the cradle.

“About 5 o’clock, there being a large crowd of people on board, orders were given for everybody on the boat to run around the decks in the hope that the hull might be loosened from the cradle. Then followed some great chasing through the boat, and the noise of hundreds of tramping feet resounding through the big steel hull was like the tread of an army. While this business was in progress, the tug made several other brave attempts to pull the ship down a little, but in vain, and during one last, vicious jerk, ‘zip’ went the rope and the crowd cheered again as the tug floundered in the water for a few moments; and all this time the Arabian continued as immovable as a stone building.

“New rope was procured, and once more the tug essayed to complete its task, but still in vain. This time the efforts were seconded by several men with heavy jacks, who worked away with a will trying to ease the boat out of the cradle. Still she declined to budge, and as for the time being she certainly had the ‘bulge’ on the people, it was decided to call a halt to the work and postpone the launching. As it was then nearly 7 o’clock, the hundreds who had made themselves hungry and at the same time late for supper by their anxiety to see the launch, were compelled to go home disappointed, but the same people will be none the less ready to turn up at a similar affair today if the opportunity offered.”²

² Hamilton Times. July 23, 1892

The owners and all the workers who built the Arabian were determined to try to launch the vessel as soon as possible, and indeed they were prepared to try again the following Monday. Of all three Hamilton daily newspapers, it was only the Times that was able to get the news of the second launch attempt in a late edition of the paper:

““A large crowd assembled to see the launch of the Arabian this afternoon, and the splendid steamer slid into the water at 2:30 p.m. without a hitch. Little Rita Fairgrieve, the 7-year old granddaughter, broke the bottle of champagne on the vessel as she began to move and christened her the Arabian. The crowd cheered themselves hoarse and all the steam craft in the harbor sounded their whistles.”³

³ “A large crowd assembled to see the launch of the Arabian this afternoon, and the splendid steamer slid into the water at 2:30 p.m. without a hitch. Little Rita Fairgrieve, the 7-year old granddaughter, broke the bottle of champagne on the vessel as she began to move and christened her the Arabian. The crowd cheered themselves hoarse and all the steam craft in the harbor sounded their whistles.”³

The day after the launch, readers grabbing the morning edition of the Times were able to read a fulsome description of the events of Monday August 23:

“Owing to the fact of a change having been made in the time set for the launch of the propeller Arabian on Saturday, thousands of people who had waited around the dockyard on Thursday afternoon in the hope of seeing the new boat enter the water, but were disappointed, were again compelled to suffer similar pangs when they arrived at the scene of the launch on Saturday at 3 o’clock, but only to find the cradle in which the immense steel hull had him, empty, and saw the large vessel afloat about 200 yards off shore.

“At 2 o’clock there was a big crowd at the dock yard, and on the platform were members of the Fairgrieve family, with little Rita Fairgrieve in the center of the group keeping a tight hold of the bottle of champagne with which she was to christen the new vessel. Mr. High and Capt. Fairgrieve assured the waiting crowd assured the waiting crowd that no possible hitch could occur on this occasion, and that the boat was sure to go off the ways. Everything underneath the boat was dripping with grease and by means of jacks, heavy cedar supported the mass of steel so that it could not become wedged in the cradle. On either side of the bows were heavy hydraulic jacks fixed in such a way as to exert an immense power in starting the vessel, in case difficulty similar to that of Thursday should be encountered. A large force of men was busily engaged right up to 2:25 in hammering heavy wedges under the hull, and at 2:20 the order was given to ‘stand clear,’ and the crowd surged back from the big mass as sharp blows were heard from the stern where the first reports were knocked away and within a moment the piping voice of the small boy was heard in the welcome exclamation, ‘She’s off!’ For about ten seconds only those standing near the boat could see any movement, but soon the small boy’s cry was reinforced by yells of ‘There she goes,’ etc. from a hundreds throats as the ponderous ship, slowly at first, but gradually gathering an impetus which increased her speed to that of several miles an hour, slid into the water of the slip and thence floated majestically out into the bay, accompanied by the cheers of the crowds who assembled on the surrounding heights and the shrieking of the whistles of the Modjeska, the Maggie Mason, the tug St. George and several smaller craft. ‘It was the prettiest launch that has taken place from a Hamilton ship yard in thirty years,’ remarked one old shipwright, as he wiped the perspiration from his streaming bow and then gave the boat another cheer.

“Many remained near the bows of the vessel as she was leaving the ways and watched with interest the graceful movement of little Rita Fairgrieve’s arm as, with her face flushed and her eyes dancing with with excitement, she threw the bottle of champagne against the vessel’s prow, and as the glass was shivered in a thousand pieces and the rich contents frothed over the bows, she cried : ‘I christen thee ‘Arabian.’

“About fifty people had the honor of the first ride in the new boat. After she had floated out some distance from shore, the tug St. George  went out, and in a few moments, her bows were headed for Zealand’s dock, and she was soon the venter of attraction for thousands of sightseers all afternoon and all day yesterday. The proudest man in the vicinity was Mr. Hugh Fairgrieve, the designer of the boat, and he was overwhelmed with congratulations on the splendid appearance of the handsome vessel.

                             NOTES

“After the launch all the workmen who had been employed on the vessel were regaled with an abundance of refreshments, both solid and liquid, and no toast was drunk more frequently than that of ‘The Steamer Arabian.’”⁴

⁴ Hamilton Times.         July 24, 1892